Stock Market Update

[BRIEFING.COM] The major indices continue to trade in positive territory, having pulled back from their opening rally effort. The S&P 500 for its part is dancing around the 5,500 level.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (+0.2%) is having an okay day in spite of a 19% drop in Nike (NKE 76.19, -18.00, -19.1%) after its earnings report and disappointing outlook. The benefit for the Dow, which is a price-weighted average, is that Nike was one of its lowest-priced components; therefore, gains in other much higher-priced stocks like UnitedHealth Group (UNH 499.45, +13.01, +2.7%), Goldman Sachs (GS 453.54, +7.58, +1.7%), Caterpillar (CAT 331.26, +3.80, +1.2%), and Salesforce (CRM 259.74, +6.89, +2.7%) are able to offset Nike's impact.

Nike is easily the worst-performing stock in the S&P 500 today. Next is First Solar (FSLR 231.46, -18.46, -7.4%), which is noticeably weak despite Deutsche Bank raising its price target to $280 from $215 and reiterating its Buy rating. First Solar is coming back to test its 50-day moving average at $228.93.